In 2008, the Innisfree became the first céilí band from North Connacht to win the coveted All-Ireland Senior Céilí Band competition at Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann.

The North Connacht musical tradition of counties Sligo, Leitrim and Roscommon, and its strong association with the fiddle and flute, played a key role in the early recordings of Irish traditional music during the early 20th century. Emerging from this era, names such as Coleman, Morrison, Killoran and McKenna left a stylistic mark on music throughout Ireland and the United States, a rich heritage maintained in subsequent decades throughout the North Connacht region by a legion of superb musicians including Fred Finn and Peter Horan.